Album

One doesn't need to delve very deeply into music history to notice how many composers have had children who followed their father's careers, with J.S. Bach and his several musically successful sons being the most obvious example. Generally, the younger composer either has foundered under the weight of his/her father's reputation (Siegfried Wagner, Soulima Stravinsky), or eclipsed it (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Johann Strauss II, Richard Strauss), but it's unusual for two generations of composers to have achieved approximately the same degree of fame and success. Such is the case with Lennox and Michael Berkeley. The elder Berkeley, roughly a contemporary of Michael Tippett's, was overshadowed by Britten and Tippett, but enjoyed a solid reputation in Britain and had a prodigious output. His son Michael (born 1948) has made a name for himself with his orchestral music and his two operas, Baa, Baa, Black Sheep, based on Kipling, and an unusually compact and compelling version of Jane Eyre.

Chandos has released six CDs that include music by both Berkeleys, and volume six, the last in the series, is a testimony to the talent of father and son. Lennox Berkeley's Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra (1948) is an immensely appealing work whose neo-Classical clarity and memorably melodic lyricism call Poulenc to mind. Kathryn Stott and Howard Shelley perform it brilliantly, accompanied by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, led by Richard Hickox. Michael Berkeley is represented here by two pieces, Concerto for Orchestra, "Seascapes," (2004-2005) and Gregorian Variations (1982). The concerto is notable for its richly varied tonal palette and its brilliant orchestration. It's a colorful evocation of the sea, in a thoroughly modern harmonic language. Gregorian Variations, written early in Michael's career, is the work of a less experienced composer, but its inventiveness and striking orchestration mark it as the work of a composer of substance, who has something important to say. The disc (and all of the Berkeley Edition) should be of strong interest to fans of British music of the twentieth century and beyond.

© Stephen Eddins, All Music Guide

CD 1
Michael Berkeley Composer Concerto for orchestra ("Seascapes") Work 24:22 BBC National Orchestra of Wales Orchestra, Philippe Schartz Trumpet, Richard Hickox Conductor
1	1.Con energia - Calmo - Energico	7:24			$1.49
2	2.Threnody for a Sad Trumpet. In Memoriam J.A. Quarter note = 80	9:00			$1.49
3	3.Con fuoco (with drive) - Calmo - Fuocoso - Maestoso	7:58			$1.49
Sir Lennox Berkeley Composer Concerto for Two pianos and Orchestra, Op.30 Work 28:36 BBC National Orchestra of Wales Orchestra, Kathryn Stott Piano, Howard Shelley Piano, Richard Hickox Conductor
4	1.Molto moderato - Allegro - Lento	7:05			$1.49
5	2.Theme and Variations. Tema. Moderato -	1:31			$0.99
6	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 1. Allegro ma non troppo -	0:58			$0.99
7	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 2. L'istesso tempo -	0:58			$0.99
8	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 3. Allegro -	1:52			$0.99
9	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 4. Adagio -	4:09			$0.99
10	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 5. Vivace -	1:19			$0.99
11	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 6. Andante - Poco meno mosso -	2:24			$0.99
12	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 7. Tempo di Valse - Un poco meno vivo -	1:39			$0.99
13	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 8. (Orchestra tacet). Allegro -	1:01			$0.99
14	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 9. (Pianos tacet). Lento -	2:17			$0.99
15	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 10. (Orchestra tacet). Andante con moto -	1:06			$0.99
16	2.Theme and Variations. Variation 11. L'istesso tempo	2:17			$0.99
Michael Berkeley Composer Gregorian Variations for orchestra Work BBC National Orchestra of Wales Orchestra, Richard Hickox Conductor
17	Gregorian Variations for orchestra	17:04			$2.99